"Just Say Nyet" - Fedex, DHL Suspend Shipments To Russian Customers

In the aftermath of earlier comments from White House spokesman Carney that the US is considering sanctions for Ukraine violence, a move aimed squarely at Putin, at least several US private sector companies have decided to take matters into their own hands. To wit:

Express delivery companies DHL and FedEx said on Thursday they had suspended foreign shipments to individual customers in Russia because of stricter customs procedures, making it harder for internet users to buy goods from abroad. DHL will suspend all shipments of goods for personal use to Russia from January 27, the company said in emailed comments, after already suspending most such imports already in 2010.

President Vladimir Putin ordered a campaign late last year to "put into order" a booming e-commerce sector. One of the proposed measures was lowering a value threshold for purchases in foreign online stores that are subject to customs duty.

According to DHL Express, part of Deutsche Post (DPWGn.DE), Russian authorities from January 2014 expanded the list of documents required to ship goods to individual customers, which has significantly slowed customs clearance.

A Moscow call-centre operator for FedEx said shipments to individual customers in Russia were "temporarily suspended". The FedEx press office was not immediately available for comment.

According to a draft letter to clients from Russia's Association of Express Carriers, seen by Reuters, other providers such as UPS (UPS.N), TNT (TNTE.AS), and DPD also decided to suspend imports.

And now, it's time for Gapzorm to suspend shipments of natgas to European customers, just as the Qatar-mandated explosions in Sochi are set to begin. And then it gets really fun.